(car horn honks)

(overlapping chatter)

- Here we go! - Here we go!

(woman screams) Here we go!

- Oh my god, I'm Tiffany Young.

I'm in a new artist, and I'm being featured

on the H&M campaign.

Tiffany Young. - Okay, cool.

- Yeah, I'm a new artist, but--

- [Man] Oh really?

- From the K-Pop world.

("Teach You" by Tiffany Young)

So fun.

♪ I knew when I met you there was trouble in sight ♪

♪ Got so wrapped up in all your charm ♪

♪ I miss the girl in your eyes ♪

- You may have first met our guest today

as a member of the biggest K-Pop girl group of all time,

Girls' Generation, she is now a solo artist.

Please, let's give a warm Build welcome

to Tiffany Young! (audience cheers)

- Hi, everyone.

Hi, Build, thank you for having me.

Hi, Kevin, I'm Tiffany Young for those of you

who do know, hi again (laughs).

♪ Didn't your mother teach you not to play with fire ♪

♪ Caught you red-handed, should've been a better liar ♪

♪ I'll make you burn ♪

♪ Like the ashes of your cigarette ♪

♪ Didn't your mother teach ya ♪

♪ I'll be the one to teach ya ♪

Hi, I'm Tiffany Young.

I am 29 years old, I was born and raised in California.

Left to South Korea to fulfill my K-Pop dreams at 15.

Started in my wonderful band called Girls' Generation

in 2007, hi, MTV News, we are--

- [Band] Girls' Generation.

- We just celebrated a decade together

and decided to pursue our solo careers.

And my path took me back home.

I remember some of my band mates going,

"There's only one Girls' Generation,

"and there's only one Tiffany from Girls' Generation."

Your story is so special.

It's amazing, I do feel like I'm building a new story

with my fans, as well, here, coming back home.

- Tiffany Young, everybody. - Thank you so much

for having me! (audience cheers)

For everything. - Bye, thank you!

- Really? - You killed it.

- Aw! - Yeah, it was so good.

(crowd cheers)

(upbeat music)

- Thanks, Astrid. - Yes, thank you!

- I was introduced to Korean music in the early 2000's,

so I was a late bloomer amongst my friends,

but I loved and was obsessed with K-Pop.

BoA, specifically, it was so special to me,

and it still is right now.

It was one thing to listen to radio and things like that,

but to have a CD or a tape that you relate to

and like identify with because she's Korean

and she's also traveling the world to become a musician.

It's kind of crazy that it all comes full circle.

I think I'm a little slow now that it's the end of the day,

but I'm feeling good, I'm feeling good.

- [Man] Okay, got you over there.

- [Host] How old were you when you went over to South Korea?

- 15. - Were you looked at

as like an outsider when you first got there or no?

- I mean, you could say that. - Yeah.

- I came out of nowhere where I was like,

"Hi, I'm from California, I wanna be a serious artist."

- Yeah, yeah. - I would never take

a 15 year old that seriously.

It definitely was

hard at first.

(mellow music)

Even the beginning of Girls' Generation.

It did take me another two years to read and write

and be comfortable. (mellow music)

It was a time where you had to be perfect.

You had to be great at everything.

You had to dress a certain way, speak a certain way.

Look a certain way,

and for me, I loved.

I loved singing and being on stage so much

that none of that mattered.

You're pushed into this sense of urgency

at a certain time in your life.

It'll make you or break you, and if you hold on,

it makes you, and I'm glad I did.

- Perfect. - Thank you.

- [Man] Yeah!

- Come on in.

And here we are in another outfit.

Fashion. - We're joining what--

- When I came out to Korea, I was like,

"I'm gonna take over Asia and the world

"just the way BoA did."

So they were like, "You're ridiculous,"

but I mean, if you're gonna go, go big or go home.

When Girls' Generation started, my manager at the time,

he was so,

so thorough,

and I thank him 'til this day.

He always said, "You can do this, you get this done,

"I will let you sing the song at this radio."

And I was just like, "Done.

"You let me sing at this radio, I get a solo performance.

"I will do anything you want me to do."

I will get in all the hours, just to sing that one song

that was important to me at the time.

Of course, it was hard, of course, there were restrictions

and being confined and expectations,

but when you want something, you love something,

you find a way. - Tiffany!

- Woo! - From now on--

- [Woman] How have you been?

- Girls' Generation! - Generation shout-outs.

Yeah. (Tiffany laughs)

- Hi!

- Remember Annie? - What's that?

- The songs I connected with most,

my mom would always play Annie Lennox, Madonna,

Donna Summer, Whitney Houston, The Divas,

and there was a sense of woman power.

And me being obsessed with Spice Girls, girl power.

Music became really special to me

when I lost my mom at 11, 12.

I felt better and when I thought nobody else

could make me feel better.

When I think about it now,

the loss for me, I took it out on music.

That was where I

felt and expressed myself being sad or hurt

or broken or lost.

My childhood friend, she sent me the photo

of the H&M Billboard in Times Square, and she was like,

"I'm so proud of you.

"I'm so proud that you're doing

"everything you said you were."

It's been a dream from ever since I was a little girl

'cause I wanted to be an American pop star.

Good morning.

Another day.

Another coffee, another editorial.

- All going up? - Is all filled with people?

- Here we go. - Oh, hello.

(people laugh)

Ooh.

Do you see what I see?

That's all that Harry Potter stuff.

(overlapping chatter)

But I'm actually Slytherin.

(upbeat music)

Check me out, right here.

This is all mine!

I just need to choose.

Like this. - What gets you through

when you're tired and so exhausted?

- My immediate thought was like candy.

No (laughs). - Gummy Bears.

- Gummy Bears, sweets, caffeine.

No, the pride I take in creating

and the pride I take in what I've created.

And for the fans.

I hope I don't sound too cheesy or corny.

Your New Artist moments, those come once in a lifetime,

and the fact that I get to experience this again

after (laughs) 14 years, it feels amazing.

So I'm being thankful. (upbeat music)

I thought I would never feel this way again.

It does feel like falling in love with it all over again.

New York City!

I have arrived! (upbeat music)

Music is music, art is art.

If it's true and it's true to you,

it always speaks through. (upbeat music)

Staying true to that still 'til this day.

(upbeat music)